Rules of Golf overhaul; changes revealed in March

Get ready for the biggest makeover to the Rules of Golf we have seen for many decades.

The Rules of Golf are set for a major overhaul with the R&A and USGA to reveal the proposed rule changes in early March.

Golf’s governing bodies have been working to modernise and simplify the rules of golf for the past five years and according to Ryan Herringon at Golf Digest, USGA executive director Mike Davis has said no rule is off limits to any changes:

What’s expected to be revealed is nothing short of the biggest restructuring of the Rules in decades. “It doesn’t fundamentally change how you think golf is played,” Davis said. “What it does do is fundamentally change the understanding of the rules, why they are the way they are, and how they’ll be communicated.”

Reports indicate that the radically different Rules of Golf are likely to come into effect on January 1, 2019.

Some of the proposed changes include a change to the way the ball is dropped, a reduction in the time spent looking for a lost golf ball from five to three minutes and allowing players to repair spike marks on greens.

While nothing is confirmed yet, the R&A and USGA are said to be working out ways to better explain the proposed rules changes with images and videos. Mike Davis to Golf Digest that he would like to go one step further and get Siri involved.

“How come we can’t have an instance where someone can say ‘Siri, I hit my ball into a water hazard. What are my options?’ ” Davis said.

The R&A and USGA will be looking for feedback from the global golf community for six months after the proposed changes are revealed in March. We’ll keep you informed.